Cross Country History

During the 1960s, Arizona State, known for its rich tradition in men's
and women's cross country, produced several standout performers who helped
establish Sun Devil harrier history.

At the inaugural Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Championships in
1962, Sun Devil sophomore Eric Owers captured first-place honors in record time
(15:56.3) over the 3.3 mile Papago Park course in Phoenix, guiding ASU to a
fourth-place team finish.

Owers remains the lone conference titlist from Arizona State in men's
and women's cross country history. Jerry Jobski finished as the 1968 WAC
runner-up following a 13th-place finish in '67. During the '68 campaign, Jobski
also won four dual meet contests.

One of Jobski's teammates, Manuel Quintanar, placed 10th at the '68
WAC Championships. Quintanar and Jobski helped the Sun Devils earn second-place
honors, the finest conference finish in school annals.

Louis Scott, a 1968 U.S. Olympian also proved to be a force for the
Sun Devil cross country program in the 1960s.

Several Sun Devils distinguished themselves during the early 1970s,
including Doug Conley, Pete Span and Bill Brown. However, Larry Lawson may
stand as the top harrier in Arizona State chronicles.

Lawson, fresh off a third-place finish at the '74 WAC Championships,
garnered All-America honors with a 16th- place finish at the NCAA Championships
in Bloomington, Ind. Lawson (30:22.93) and teammate Mike Elder became the
initial Arizona State cross country runners to qualify for the NCAAs.

A decade later, Mike Stahr forged onto the scene and became the third
ASU male runner to compete at the NCAAs. En route to the NCAAs, Stahr finished
fourth (31:42.7) at the NCAA Region VIII meet, which is the highest finish by a
Sun Devil.

ASU launched its women's program in 1979. All-conference performer Sabrina
Peters qualified for the 1980 national championship event in Seattle and
finished 45th. Peters redshirted the following year, giving Maria Trujillo of
Mexico the Sun Devils' top spot. Trujillo and Peters joined forces in '82 to
provide ASU with its strongest attack ever.

That season, Peters returned to the NCAAs, finishing 44th, and, a year
later, Lynn Nelson competed at the NCAA Championships. Both Nelson (10,000
meters, 1988) and Trujillo (marathon, 1984) would later represent their
homelands in the Olympic Games.

Current head coach Ken Lehman arrived in 1985 from the University of
Houston. During his first four campaigns in Tempe, two of his runners -- Laura
LaMena and Teresa Barrios -- qualified for the NCAAs.

The women's program posted upper-division Pac-10 Conference finishes
in Lehman's first three season as Sun Devil head coach. In addition, Arizona
State twice competed at the NCAA Region VIII Championships.

Meanwhile, the ASU men's team can claim four top-seven conference finishes
in the past 10 seasons. The Sun Devils have also participated at the region
meet twice during Lehman's tenure.

Out of all these former Arizona State stars, Todd Lewis might rank as
the most prolific in Sun Devil cross country annals.

In 1991, Lewis completed his outstanding career as a Sun Devil with an
11th-place finish at the NCAA Championships in Tucson, Ariz. Two years
earlier, he recorded four top-10 finishes and later earned All-America acclaim
in the 5,000 meters at the NCAA Championships. Lewis also set school marks in
the steeplechase and 5,000 meters.

During the early days, cross country was used as a training tool for
the distance runners of the track and field team. But over time the cross
country program has become a vital part of the Arizona State intercollegiate
athletic scene.